NASA Discovers An Entirely New Solar System Called TRAPPIST-1 Where Alien Life Could Indeed Exist

 For decades,  extraterrestrial and UFO enthusiast groups have been hoping for signs of life on other planets; an idea that seemed quite farfetched to others.

However due to a new recent discovery made by NASA, those wishing for such life may just get what they have been hoping for!

A new solar system discovered

According to an article written by Henry Bodkin for The Telegraph, "Life may have evolved on at least three planets within a newly discovered solar system that is 39 light years from Earth." This [mentioned] article was written in response to an announcement made by NASA on Wednesday in which they announced the discovery of an entirely new solar system.

TRAPPIST- 1

This newly discovered solar system has been named TRAPPIST-1, and for those wishing to know more regarding it, the discovery team of the said system has set up a specialwebsite where you can read all about it.

In the about section of the mentioned website, the following information has been written: "TRAPPIST-1 is a planetary system, located 12 parsecs away from the Solar system (39 light years), near the ecliptic, within the constellation of Aquarius. Around a star which is 12 times less massive than the Sun and only slightly larger than Jupiter, there are at least seven planets in orbit. The initial discovery was made by TRAPPIST, the TRAnsiting Planets and PlanetesImals Small Telescope"

More regarding the planets (in the new solar system)

According to NASA, "researchers using TRAPPIST [initially] announced they had discovered three planets in the system. Assisted by several ground-based telescopes, including the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope, Spitzer confirmed the existence of two of these planets and discovered five additional ones, increasing the number of known planets in the system to seven."

But why all the hype?
Andrew Griffin for Independent News states, "At least three of the seven planets represent the "holy grail for planet-hunting astronomers", because they sit within the "temperate zone" and are the right temperature to allow alien life to flourish, the researchers have said. And they are capable of having oceans, again suggesting that life could flourish on them."

So does this mean that alien life could truly exist then?

According to information given in Griffin's article (mentioned above) "No other star system has ever been found to contain so many Earth-sized and rocky planets, of the kind thought to be necessary to contain aliens." The article goes on to say that "The researchers might soon be able to find evidence of life on the planets, they [the researchers] have said. British astronomer Dr Chris Copperwheat, from Liverpool John Moores University, who was part of the international team, said: "The discovery of multiple rocky planets with surface temperatures which allow for liquid water make this amazing system an exciting future target in the search for life. Any evidence of life is likely to be "strong, very strong or conclusive", the scientists said. It will be done by looking for what molecules are in the atmosphere – if they were to find things like oxygen, and in the right amounts, then it would probably indicate that there was biological activity".